Geoff, hope you don't mind a post that doesn't specifically deal with putting; however, it may help many of your readers. I'm told by the NCGA that the Rules of Golf are there to help golfers, but I truly believe this rule needs more consideration. I was recently playing in a NCGA Senior 2-Man Best Ball Tournament and on a short 4-par had hit a perfect drive in the middle of a fairway about 90 yards from the green. My ball appeared to be sitting perfectly on the grass; however, unbeknownst to me, my ball had actually come to rest on top a fairway watering fixture access cover about 8" x 12" in size (not a sprinkler head) which had grass growing over the top. I would guess the thickness of the grass under my ball to be about one-half inch or even thinner. I selected a pitching wedge and when I made my swing, the blade of my wedge hit behind the ball, bounced off the metal cover and caused the ball to squib into a sandtrap to my right! Before hitting my next shot, I brought the matter to the attention of the others in my group and it was decided that I would play two balls and post two scores until we could get a decision from the clubhouse. With my second ball, I took relief no closer to the hole without a penalty stroke and played out the hole. I took a bogey on my earlier squibbed ball and a par on my second. However, the rule states that I don't get relief and a free drop because I had already taken my next shot. Had I discovered the cover under my ball before hitting my second shot, I could have taken relief with no penalty. As it turned out, that one stroke cost my partner and I a trip to the next round of playoffs in the Senior 2-Man Best Ball...one doesn't get a chance to move on to the next round that often! Any thoughts on this one would be appreciated?
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